The learner experience in any training program affects the transfer of knowledge and the reputation of its designers and host organization. So how can instructional designers account for accessibility guidelines in their e-learning designs and still create a good experience for each learner?

In this session, Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company, will explore techniques for designing e-Learning that is both accessible and engaging. We will review the most common web accessibility guidelines used in e-Learning (WCAG 2.0 Guidelines & Principles), and discuss how these guidelines may affect e-Learning. We will also see samples of engaging and accessible e-Learning and review specific case studies to illustrate design issues and decisions.

By the end of this session, you will:1. Recognize how eLearning design can be both accessible and engaging so that all learners share the same quality experience2. Describe the most common accessibility guidelines in web design used in eLearning3. Describe how the AODA standards may affect eLearning design and delivery

When:Wednesday, January 21st, 20156:00pm to 8:30pm

Access the Accessible eLearning Note-taking Tool for the presentation:

Tuesday, August 05, 2014

Instructional designers, facilitators and training developers can play a strategic role in helping companies and its workforce become a motivated company. To learn more, read this month's feature article in ISPI's Performance Xpress written by Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc.

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Very excited to be speaking at the eACH conference again on July 11, 2014. It's my pleasure to speak about "Designing Accessible eLearning" and "Engaging Learners by Making Training Motivational". If you're in healthcare designing training programs, you need to attend. Click the link below to find out more.

http://www.eachconference.ca

Here's more detail:

Designing Accessible eLearning:

The learner experience in any training program affects the transfer of knowledge and the reputation of its designers and host organization. So how can instructional designers account for accessibility guidelines in their elearning designs and still create a good experience for each learner? This talk will review the most common web accessibility guidelines used in eLearning (W3C AA and AAA guidelines). It will also demonstrate samples of engaging accessible eLearning and specific case studies revealing design issues and decisions. It will review key aspects of the AODA standards and how they may affect elearning.

Engaging Learners by Making Training Motivational:

To engage adult learners, we, as instructional designers, need to be developing “motivating” online and facilitated training programs within our organizations. There are three unique factors that foster motivation and in turn, spark engagement and understanding, and behavioural change. This presentation will identify these three factors and outline how they are related to adult learning needs, as well as, highlight how they can be applied to learning programs and the appropriate tools to use.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

York University’s Student Papers & Academic Research Kit (SPARK), eLearning designed and produced by The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc., receives the Ontario College and University Library Association’s Award for Special Achievement.

"The Knowledge Transfer Company acted as our guide through the eLearning design and development process of SPARK. Our group representing three university departments and multiple stakeholders worked collaboratively with The Knowledge Transfer Company on a needs assessment followed by a highly effective development strategy and sound instructional and graphic design for a series of eLearning modules that matched our targeted learner groups. Knowledge Transfer brings the necessary knowledge, skills and experience required to create an award winning learning tool; one that York University is proud to showcase."

Project Lead, York University, 2014

SPARK is a pan-university online learning resource designed to support students in the development of academic literacies and help them succeed at written academic assignments.

SPARK is 13 modules weaving together the processes of research, writing and learning skills, and provides access to over 37 printable supporting resources. All content is covered under a Creative Commons license and because it is housed on the Internet, is available for other higher education institutions and faculty.

The award will be given out at the Ontario Library Association's Super Conference in January, 2014.

The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc. spends the most time inside businesses and higher education institutions. We understand what motivates adult learners and creating engaging eLearning products.

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Written by Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc.

In discussions with people in the industry and trying to determine hot topics and trends for digital media producers, recurring issues came up with new projects and new companies. So I decided to write them up. Keep these in mind when applying for grants too!

1. Target audience not defined well enough.

Convince your potential partner that you understand exactly who and why would use and buy your product. If an audience is not well understood, your product features will be off and your marketing efforts ineffective.

2. Not enough money budgetted for reaching target markets.

It is clear, however, that one area where producers feel they can play with their budgets is in the marketing budgets. Make sure you let others know that you understand what it will take to make your project succeed.

3. First year revenue projections too high.

The numbers stated as projected revenue are outrageously high and out of reach for most new products especially in their first year on the market. Being optimistic is good but keep it real and acheiveable. Estimating way too much can work against you. It makes you look unprofessional and out of touch.

4. Failing to link initial product to a bigger or secondary market for future growth and success.

One element that potential partners look for is secondary markets and broader partnership opportunities. They want to see that you have considered what will happen after you have developed and launched. How will you continue to grow the product and stay competitive?

5. Misunderstanding the sales cycle of the market you want to enter with your new product.

Wanting to create a product for a specific market that your research has shown has potential but not pushing your research and planning efforts far enough to truly investigate how the customers in that market buy will end your new business venture before you begin. You must understand how to reach your customer and understand how buying decisions are made.

With a little more work and effort in outlining your new product's audience and market perameters, potential partners will more easily be able to understand exactly what you want to do and will clearly see that you understand how to do it.

Saturday, September 21, 2013

by Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc.

Over coffee with Milana Todoroff, a fellow senior instructional designer, changes in eLearning design and development became a topic of great discussion. So great, we decided to write them down. Here's our thoughts:

1.) Status Quo: eLearning is becoming more the norm in large companies instead of in-class programs. This is a good thing but the quality of online instructional design is decreasing as course design becomes more about learning a solftware program to build it faster and cheaper rather than understanding adult learning and motivation, and investing in a sound learner experience. Eventually the push-back from learners will force companies to provide a better online learning experience.

2.) Accessibility: The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) (and other similar government initiatives in other provinces and countries) requires changes in the design and development of eLearning for training - in particular, courses offered to the public or in the education system. However, some popular course design features and functionality offered within current market eLearning software are not fully accessible. So design changes are required and a better understanding of what is and what isn't accessible is needed for instructional designers to meet the needs of their learners.

3.) Social Media: The use of social media in and by large companies is growing. As companies develop policies on the use of social media within their organizations, there will be an increased need for training programs outlining the differences between social media sites, associated risks and general how-tos in creating effective messaging to achieve predefined goals.

4.) Learning Benefits: There is an increased push by employees for recognized accreditation in their training and immediate job application of new skills. Companies will need to develop programs with accreditation in mind and/or a greater sense of purpose for learners.

5.) Expanded Options: There is a growing trend within colleges and universities to develop Massive Open On-line Courses (MOOC). While MOOCs do not always provide course credits, there is an opportunity here for corporations to enhance employee learning by partnering with institutions offering MOOCs by adding specific courses into corporate learning paths.

Saturday, August 10, 2013

Many corporations want to use social media sites with employees but are too afraid. They may believe that it allows for too much freedom, that using social media at work is a waist of salaried time or that company sanctioned social media use might get abused. But employees want to use it and they are using it both for personal and professional use.

Corporate-based social media can help a company be more competitive and current in its thinking. It can promote their products and services in a cost-effective way, create internal communities of practice and facilitate knowledge transfer, enhance communications and feedback with customers and clients, and it can be used for hiring and recruiting. It can also highlight employee expertise. It has the potential to reach a huge audience, while at the same time, target a specialized group of customers or suppliers.

Employees can benefit by using company services to reach out to their work colleagues, clients and customers. They can begin to build their own online brand around their expertise.

Reduce the risks of inappropriate use and protect both the company and employees by taking an organized and proactive approach.

Start with creating an organization-wide social media
strategy that involves the major social media sites (i.e., Facebook, LinkedIn,
Twitter, YouTube). You will need to involve your marketing and
communications/public relations team for this.

Discover what messaging best meets your organizational needs
and target them the to specific social media site that best suits the delivery
of each message. Each social media site excels in a different method of communication;
understanding that difference, the pros and cons of each, is key.

Next, you need a formal organization-wide policy that spells
out why and how you want employees to use social media. Define what is
acceptable use and provide examples.
You will need your HR department along with other stakeholders (IT,
Marketing, Corporate Communications, etc.).

Training is next. I’m a fan of eLearning to reach employees
effectively and efficiently with the same message at the same time.

Create your training objectives around both the policy and
the strategy. Be sure to explain the differences of each social media site
along with some how-to’s and how each site suits different messages and information.

Provide examples, case studies, definitions and where to go
for more help.

Clearly indentify responsibilities of employees when using
social media and how information can easily identify them as employees of your
company even if they don’t explicitly spell it out.

Focus on privacy issues and understand who owns the content
posted on each site – the company, the employee or the social media site?

Conducting needs assessments can help your learning and
training team develop more engaging learning programs, adapt to change and
deepen the team’s skills. A needs assessment takes into account how the
course/program fits into the organizational offerings and the practical
elements of infrastructure, budget and staffing. It places the learner first
and revolves all activity around who they are, what they need and what they
expect.

Some
key elements to consider in conducting a needs assessment are:

Identifying optimal eLearning methods to meet training needs.

Establishing the scope, implementation
plan and technical requirements to support eLearning and learner needs.

Specifying instructional goals—What do
you want learners to know and be able to do at the end of the learning?

Some standard analysis to
include in a needs assessment consist of the following:

Strategic
analysis that
identifies the organization’s strategic objectives as they relate to learner
development, defines high-level priority target areas for knowledge and skills
transfer, and describes the current and desired learning environment.

IT infrastructure assessments that
provides information about the current configuration of the organization’s
IT/learning delivery. This assessment engages the IT department at the
beginning of the process.

Administrative process analysis that
maps existing administrative functions and identifies workflow, and current and
desirable procedures pertaining to program implementation.

Learner needs assessment that identifies all learner groups and their
specific needs for learning. The creation of
profiles allows you to understand your audience’s motivation for learning and
any potential barriers to that learning. The creation of use cases furthers the
analysis and speaks directly to the learner experience.

Competition analysis that provides a sense of what is being
offered to the same group of learners. It looks for gaps and advantages offered
by current and planned programming and how to design and market a competitive
advantage and offer more direct and unique learner benefits.

Budget reviews that account for development costs measured
against projected course fees and revenue for various or specific business
models. The budget reviews can be rudimentary and only focus on specific
departments, programs or they can be a wider review of the entire organization.
The goal is to account for time on task to ensure smart design and successful
delivery and to identify any outside costs associated with a new program.

Actionable
outcomes that summarizes and sets clear objectives for future
development incorporating online learning and to identify pilot projects and
program/course development plans along with the required resources, both
internal and external, to realize goals.

The Benefits of Conducting an eLearning
Needs Assessment

Developing
eLearning is much more detailed than other training as in its most simplistic
form it requires taking purpose and content directly back to its foundation.

In creating
a new course or converting a program to an online format, the developers and
subject matter experts must become keenly aware of their expert blind spots. The
team must acknowledge and address their tendency to skip over information or
knowledge that is so routine or basic that it has become tacit knowledge or
knowledge or process that is automatic.

Understanding
purpose for learning and creating objectives that dictate assembly of content
and structure of design requires more resources and discussion than most learning
and training departments (or organizations wanting to engage in eLearning) realize. To be clear on purpose also requires explicit knowledge of
instructional design and adult learning principals, and tacit knowledge of
storytelling and imagery.

In
instructor-lead training, courses or programs can easily be adjusted based on
learner feedback. However in eLearning, changes are more difficult. Because of
the level of complexity in development, changes require the resources of the
entire creation team and additional budget to re-program the online components.

Conducting a
needs assessment makes it easier to assess the quality of program and the
expected learner experience at the time of commitment. It allows for discussion
and exploration that will benefit all other program development. In conducting
a needs assessment, members of the project team learn the process of eLearning
development by way of discussing the key areas of the needs assessment analysis.

One of the
key benefits of conducting a needs assessment is in establishing measurements for
efficacy and evaluations for the program. Another is in building a comfort
level within the learning and training team to make more informed decisions and
ensure everyone is working towards the same goals.

Thursday, April 04, 2013

Join us at the SLOAN-C Conference: Emerging Technologies for Online Learning

April 9-11, Las Vegas

SPARKing Student Success

Melrose 4

April 9, 2013 - 2:30pm

Information Session 2

Innovative Media and Tools

The Student Papers and Academic Research Kit is a set of eLearning modules designed to assist students in successfully completing an academic paper at York University.

Academic libraries have long been spaces for student
learning and recently many higher education institutions have expanded their scope
to provide writing, research, and learning help. Currently these “learning commons” are designated physical
areas, however, not all students are physically on campus. For this reason York University
developed a Virtual Learning Commons, called SPARK -Student Papers and Academic
Research Kit, an e-learning resource that provides online assistance on a range
of critical skills and academic literacies.

SPARK focuses on helping students complete assignments and it
weaves together three core areas; research, writing, and learning skills. These
three themes are interwoven throughout the modules as they are inter-related
and recursive processes. The
resource is modular to allow students to use it flexibly and faculty to embed
individual modules within their own online learning environments.

SPARK employs a variety of media
including video, audio, and interactive components in order to provide students
with flexible learning options. The design is such that any part of the
resource can be modified, removed or expanded which will facilitate ongoing
development to ensure that the elements remain relevant to students over time. Needs assessment data as well as student
usability testing results will be discussed.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

by Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc.

In the last
month, two clients have asked me about ‘gamification.’ They indicated that they
wanted to ‘gamify’ their learning by adding badges but were trying to figure
out how to do it and were interested in finding out what the term gamification really
means. They also mentioned that their learning management system providers were
beginning to promote gamification features now available and were encouraging
them to include them in their next upgrade.

Not to be
confused with serious games or rewards systems (such as loyalty programs),
gamification is the addition of an employee recognition program that
incorporates visual components such as badges or points that can be viewed externally
by the public and/or internally by fellow employees.

Using badges
or points to recognize achievement is not new. Think back to when you were a
child and may have been a member of Girl Guides or Boy Scouts. As you fulfilled
certain criteria or learned a new skill, you were awarded a badge. Also think
of sports – swimming or skating lessons. As you improved through your series of
organized lessons, you received tangible recognition for your accomplishments
in the form of a badge or ribbon. Even in elementary school, your teacher may
have put stickers on your tests or assignments before handing them back, thus
using an informal but visual recognition system. (If your friends saw that you got a
sticker and they didn’t, that sticker may have made them want to work harder
for the next test or assignment to gain the same bragging rights that you
earned through receiving your sticker.)

Social Media and Gamification

Social media
has brought this notion of visual recognition into the spotlight. If you use a
social media site, and likely you do, you are publicly recognized by the
number of friends you have, the number of reviews you post, the number of
contacts you have made, how many times you checked-in, and/or how many other
people liked what you posted. Also contributing to the popularity of a recognition
system is the development of online games whereby as you reach competency
levels within a game, you are rewarded with a promotion to the next and more
complex level of play. In return, you are able to join a new group of higher-skilled
players. In both cases, the users are publicly acknowledged and feel a sense of
acceptance through the advancement of levels, attainment of badges or
procurement of higher numbers. This may have an immediate effect on improving
one’s reputation and profile or online identity, and result in an increase in
self-confidence.

Learning and
training departments are wondering how they can refresh their learning and how
they can motivate employees or spark internal competition within new learning
or innovation within their organizations using gamification. Gamification can
also provide for employee engagement and retention.

4 Proposed Forms for Gamification in Organizations

Gamification
can take many forms within an organization’s learning and training program:

You can replace job ladders by using levels with
badges to visually represent a specific level and therefore a package or
grouping of specific learning offerings.

You can look to badges as certification or
credentialling for job promotion and advancement that is tied to specific
role-based or competency-based training programs.

You can include in performance evaluations and tie
to internal benefits (i.e., pay increases, vacation days/weeks) based on
reaching higher levels.

You can use to indicate levels of participation
within organization-wide initiatives thus highlighting loyalty, commitment and
leadership.

Benefits of Gamification in Organizations

My friend,
colleague and expert in serious games and learning, Anne Derryberry, believes
that a well-designed badge system does several things at once:

It articulates the path(s) to success

It
provides incentives that are meaningful to the target audience

It
rewards desired behaviours and achievements

It
represents the badgeholder’s status, competencies and attainments to the rest
of the world

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

by Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc.

Effective use of PowerPoint can improve your professional
image and enhance your career thus promoting knowledge transfer. The
information used in this post is from a course I wrote and designed for the
Ontario Bar Association aimed at helping lawyers increase their presentation
skills and is rewritten here with the OBA’s permission.

People attend presentations to share knowledge, learn new
approaches and network so why not ensure that you are putting your best and
expert self on display as the presenter.

Research shows that a presenter’s reputation can be at risk
if their presentation is weak and disorganized and this includes the PowerPoint
slide deck. Presenters with poor
slides were labeled ‘backward thinkers’, ‘luddites’, ‘unprofessional’, and ‘disrespectful
of their audience’s time and attention.’

Opinions of speakers increased
when their PowerPoint presentation contained few sentences, large type,
substantive points, proper citations, meaningful graphs and images, and links
to additional information.

Opinions decreased
if the presentation contained too much information or too many slides, and an improper
use of humour or cartoons (including clip art).

The Slides

The goal of a PowerPoint presentation is to help you connect
with your audience and focus their attention on what is relevant in order to lead
them to understand and remember what you have to say. This results in a transfer of knowledge.

8 Tips for Effective PowerPoint Presentations

Use high contrasting colour for the background
and text so your audience can easily see the information being presented.

Try using 28 and 24 points for font size.

Stick to one or two standard sans-serif fonts
such as Ariel or Calibri unless it is part of a proper title or logo.

Use the’ four bullet rule’ for the information
you wish to present; your audience cannot remember more information than that
at one time. Keep the length of
each bullet to no more than two lines.

Consider using bold text for each bullet of
information as you talk about it while graying or subduing the other
points. This helps your audience
focus on what you are talking about ‘right now.‘

To highlight specific words use uppercase,
italics or bold. Avoid using fonts with swirls and twists as well as
underlining as that can cut off some letters and make them difficult to read.

Use media such as video, photos, audio and
animation only if it highlights key content, supports a point of view or evokes
a specific emotion. Always ask yourself, “How does this photo or video serve my
presentation?”

The Presentation

To prepare a professional presentation, you need three things to effectively transfer knowledge: a clear goal, an understanding of who the intended audience will be and an outline of the main topic and supporting sub-topics. Then you can create your slide deck using the best practices listed above.

And finally, to improve your presentation – practice. Practice giving your presentation in
the most realistic environment you can. When you practice any task in a
low-stress casual environment and are then put under stress to perform well,
your chances of choking under the pressure increases. By practicing under
pressure, you learn to stay calm and let your experience and knowledge show
because your brain is using its planning and executing power. Inexperience
calls up brainpower involved in fear and anxiety; a process you can’t control.

5 Presenation Practice Tips

To simulate a realistic environment, try the following:

Deliver your presentation with your computer and
the projection equipment in front of colleagues.

Get a feel how the words flow and where you
might stumble.

Check the timing of your presentation to ensure
it fits into the allotted time.

Speak naturally about your material; memorizing
can come across robotic and unnatural.

Avoid talking to the screen and reading directly
from your slides.

Ensure you provide your audience with a summary of your
presentation and your contact information. Also consider offering a list of resources should they wish
to obtain more information on your presentation topic.

Use the checklist below the next time you need to create a
presentation and are asked to transfer your knowledge. And always put your best slide forward.

Presentation Checklist

Introduction:

1. Does your
presentation have a clear message or purpose that your audience should
remember?

2. Is there
something that you want them to do at the end of your presentation? Is that clearly stated?

3. Do your
first few slides define the topic and create the appropriate setting for your
presentation?

4. Do you provide
your audience with an overview of your presentation?

Body of the Presentation:

1. Do you
offer linking information to connect your points to tell a complete story?

The Ontario Bar Association is a branch of
the Canadian Bar Association, an organization of lawyers formed to provide
support by the profession to the profession so that it may render better
service to its members and the public. This is accomplished by both education
and representation to government on topics of current concern. To learn
more about the Ontario Bar Association, visit: http://www.oba.org/.

Friday, June 22, 2012

by Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc.

When considering building eLearning or any training program, it’s important to take a broader view – one that incorporates organizational strategy, goals and evidence-based decision making into the case.

Collect supporting evidence in order to make the right directional training decisions -- to invest or not to invest in an eLearning initiative – and to design a useful and useable training product. Seek the following information: stakeholder and learner groups along with their specific needs; benefits to the organization; and costs and opportunities to the stakeholders focusing on return on investment using the following six steps.

1. Identify Stakeholders

Start by identifying who the learning initiative touches and how it affects them.

Ask and answer the following initial questions:

Who is the department sponsoring the initiative?

Who is the proposed development team?

Who in senior management is affected and what other departments are they responsible for?

What are the overall objectives of the department, division or organization over the next three years?

Who else in the organization would you like to see involved in your initiative?

Who else could benefit from the training?

2. Identify Stakeholder ROI

Talk, think and design in terms of return on investment for your stakeholders.

Some benefits of eLearning to consider are:

Employees receiving on-going training are significantly more productive than those who do not. This can affect productivity, absenteeism, moral and sales.

ELearning can focus in on specific competencies thus affecting behaviour, process and workflow.

ELearning allows for collaboration and partnerships with other departments, institutions and organizations.

ELearning can enhance knowledge transfer (i.e. assisting with retention and recruiting and supporting mentoring and communities of practice).

3. Know Your Learners

Creating a learner profile allows you to understand the motivation for taking the learning and any potential barriers to that learning. See the posting “Know Your Audience” for details on why and how to create learner profiles.

4. Create Use Cases

Creating use cases aims to identify risks, barriers, opportunities and benefits that may have been missed in collecting the basic information.

For learning development, focus on the learning experience by examining how and where each learner group will interact with the eLearning. Will they be in a computer lab? At home? In a classroom with a group or on their own? Describe the experience in each case and ensure to incorporate the learner needs previously identified and look for technical and logistical issues that could have a negative or positive affect.

For learning outcomes, focus on how you will prove that the initiative achieved its goals. Create scenarios for each learner group that describes how the new information will be used within the organization. This will help expose gaps in the overall project or in the content or competencies addressed. You are also looking for other opportunities, stakeholders and learner groups in this planning exercise. When you picture the new knowledge in action, you gain a deeper understanding of how it needs to be created, the level of the content (i.e. Blooms) and evaluation (i.e. Kirkpatrick) required and the most effective delivery method (i.e. blended or self-guided).

Ask and answer these important questions:

What do my learners need to know and be able to do at the end of the training?

Why do I want them to know and do this?

How will my organization know that the training achieved the ROI that was intended?

What measurements will you put in place?

5. Set Scope

Be specific in the training initiative outcomes and the breadth and depth of the information needing to be covered as well as the instructional and supporting media elements that are required to achieve the desired learning outcomes. With all the evidence you’ve gathered and with the assumed outcomes and benefits clearly stated, now describe your training initiative in detail and include the purpose, learning objectives, and the training development criteria based on learner groups and stakeholders and their needs.

6. Calculate Budget

ROI examines benefits in relation to costs. Calculate how much the training initiative is going to cost in a couple of ways:

The cost of not doing the training. Try to determine if there are savings to be realized from the new knowledge.

Also ask and answer the following questions:

Can you share the expenses amongst the stakeholders?

Can you create the learning initiative in phases and spread the costs out?

Learn to talk in terms of risks against rewards, short-term and long-term and how the initiative aligns with the strategic plan. Tell a story of the projected positive outcomes the training will yield. Ensure you let the stakeholders know that you did your homework – you collected the evidence to allow them to make the right decision.

Monday, February 06, 2012

by Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc.

Knowing your audience is a must for anything you present, build, deliver or sell. And by the term audience, I mean learners, customers, users, viewers, listeners, readers, clients, markets or followers. This is particularly important for instructional designers.

Create a profile of your project’s audience, in fact, perhaps three profiles. I find that when I look critically at an audience for an elearning project, I can usually recognize three distinct groups each with different characteristics and needs and levels of interest.

Creating a profile allows you to understand your audience’s motivation for learning and any potential barriers to that learning. I look to identify four key categories of information about them and I do them in order.

1. Demographics

Collect data on gender, age, location, language, job title, place of employment, and/or level of education. This provides you with the first glance at who they are and how members differ from one another. You can collect this and other project-relevant information ahead of time through a simple questionnaire or by using existing statistics from Human Resources.

2. Knowledge

Get a sense of how much your audience(s) already knows about the topic of the course or presentation. Is the topic new for them or do they have some prior knowledge? In learning and training, you can gather this information through a pre-course assessment, also called a diagnostic assessment, or from past program evaluations.

3. Purpose

What motivates your audience(s) to be interested in your training program and why are they attending, watching or listening online or in-person? Where does this training fit into their work/life balance? Is it focused on career path, lifelong learning or mandatory? Based on your analyses of the first two categories, create a few use cases on how each audience group may access (for example, for eLearning, will they be at home or at work?) or benefit from your program (for example, how will they put this training into practice right away?). This will help you identify issues or benefits that you hadn’t initially considered in your design or delivery and/or choice of technologies.

4. Needs

When looking at audience needs, take into account accessibility, environment, corporate culture and multi-cultural differences. Set up an interview with a few audience members to gain some sense on how they might use new information. Remember to account for the various differences from your demographic, prior knowledge and purpose analyses. Some issues that have been revealed on my past projects included a case where learners did not have access to a computer on the job for online mandatory coursework and another project revealed that learners were expected to attend mandatory face-to-face sessions when their work schedules wouldn’t allow it. Anticipate barriers to learning from the beginning.

The perspective gained during the process of discovering your audience will surprise you. When I’ve taken clients through the process of identifying their audience(s) (mainly for eLearning projects), most of them found it a taxing experience. Some didn’t think it mattered at all and was a waste of time. However, the pain passed and insight appeared. Here are a few examples:

1. One of Canada’s largest retailers didn’t understand a key audience because they were part-time workers not full-time employees. Essentially, this group was ignored. Yet, this group of workers held a customer-facing position and a direct link to sales. But, they also had a turnover rate of 25-90 percent depending on location and store size. Understanding who this group of workers were and their needs led to an initiative addressing, amongst other things, retention and competency-based training.

2. Canada’s largest law firm was creating an in-house learning centre and through the process of identifying audience, discovered that one of the largest users groups would be the firm’s clients. Suddenly, this project had potential to be a value-added service and offer the firm an advantage over their competition. The project immediately gained more profile within the firm and buy-in from senior members.

3. One of Canada’s top-ranked universities wanted to develop some learning modules on the principals of teaching excellence. Through a detailed study, the potential audience groups and their specific needs were identified which directed the graphic and instructional design of the series in a manner that established credibility and provided teaching strategies which could be implemented right away. It also solidified the choice of building the modules online. In turn, the series received incredible reviews and was marketed around the world to other higher educational institutions.

To effectively transfer knowledge, you need to be absolutely clear in your intensions and objectives and you need to make sure your audience is clear as well. You also want to ensure you understand what your audience needs from you.

Ask yourself the following question, “What do you want your audience to know and be able to do after interacting with the training?”[i] You then need to find out what your audience has been told about the course (or presentation or communication tool) and assess their expectations.

What 3 things should your audience notice about your training?

Any training program you create (also applies to presentations and communication tools) must be specific enough and targeted enough to a particular group of learners to allow for effective learning. Consider three key factors in transferring knowledge that involve your audience:

1. Establishes Credibility

Do you have credibility already and how can you maintain it? Or do you have to gain credibility? Is there enough evidence to support your message? What expectations does your audience have of you? Credibility is directly related to quality. Your audience will assign the following attributes to you, your organization and/or your training if you have or can establish credibility: intelligence, competence, believability and expertise.[ii] In training, you can establish credibility when you present both sides of an issue, follow through on the delivery of materials and information that you promised to provide, and properly cite research and evidence that support your premise and desired outcomes.

2. Builds Rapport

You can only build rapport by finding common ground. Because we are talking about an audience, we can assume that they are there to somehow be inspired by or learn from the training or presentation you are providing. You want and need your audience to connect with the language and terminology used, look and tone of the training and the environment surrounding the training. Refer to your audience profile so you can better shape your offering for a positive and effective learning experience. Show respect for your audience by not writing/speaking above them, below them or without them.

3. Provides Solutions

Whether you are solving problems, providing new information or capturing tacit knowledge, a goal in knowledge transfer, be it through eLearning or presentations, needs to focus on offering relevant, beneficial information your audience can put into action right away. Information can only become knowledge if one acts on it. Offer opportunities for deeper understanding and ensure that next steps are provided to seek more information and where to go for help in acting on the new information.

In the end, your audience will applaud.

[i] Adapted from the book by Wiggins and McTighe called Understanding by Design (2005, ASCD).

[ii] Although Zoller and Landry (pg.1) specifically address giving presentations and how non-verbal patterns can establish credibility, I believe that the attributes of credibility can also be applied to training methods such as eLearning and face-to-face facilitation.

For more information about designing training and giving presentations, I recommend the following three books:

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

by Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc.

Driving home a notion that we’ve all always believed in but conveniently put out of mind is that what truly and deeply motivates us is not money. In reading Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink (2009, Riverhead Books), he shares his view and a pool of evidence that states: “Tangible rewards tend to have a substantially negative effect on intrinsic motivation” (Pink, pg. 37), and that tangible rewards such as money contain short-term benefits only. Pink’s ultimate discussion focuses on what motivates people in the workplace. He states that monetary rewards can lead to bad behavior, increased risk-taking, decreased cooperation and decreased motivation (Pink, pg. 64), and a narrowed focus (Pink, pg. 50) thus cutting out creativity and innovation.

To be creative and innovative, we, as instructional designers, need to be developing “motivating” online and facilitated training programs and policies within the organization.

Essentially, Pink’s message is this: Today’s organizations are not “operating” based on what truly motivates us and they are damaging their own efforts for success by focusing on numbers – quarterly results, shareholder value, sales quotas and bonuses. Although I don’t care for his analogy about computer operating systems because I feel it just adds noise around his focal point of motivation, he believes that in order to retain staff, ensure creativity and achieve success, companies need to focus their attention and benefit structure away from a monetary reward system. They need, instead, to shift to an intrinsically motivating system where people are encouraged to achieve mastery, where people have more autonomy and where people see a sense of purpose in what they do. This, in turn, will lead organizations to greater success.

As I’ve become interested in how the kinds of concepts and processes presented in business and other related books transfer knowledge, in my blogs I like to offer an overview of the book and its concepts, and how companies can act on the newly presented knowledge in their professional development initiatives. When we better understand how knowledge is transferred, we can create better programs and articulate clearly the value to the organization. We are then able to sell them internally to our superiors and colleagues and garner the development support required to produce them.

Pink highlights key areas that companies should strive for in their business initiatives and environments. The drive for mastery, the drive for autonomy and the drive for purpose are what will lead to greater job satisfaction, better performance, less turnover and more engagement in what the company does.

In learning and training, we understand Pink’s motivating factors when designing professional development programs. Adult learning needs are directly related to what Pink is telling us along with his supporting evidence by such recognized researchers that we see in education all the time: Carol Dweck, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Howard Gardner and others.

3 Essential Motivational Elements Required for eLearning

To illustrate Pink’s key motivational elements and how professional development programs can play a role, I have listed a few points relating them to eLearning.

Self-paced eLearning solves time issues for the organization and the learner groups. When learners can select when and where to review a course, you allow them the flexibility to set their own schedules and learning environments thus providing for a more positive experience. For the organization, of course, the ability to train larger numbers of learners at the same time using well constructed and consistent information saves time and money.

ELearning levels the playing field as all learners have access the same information. In designing courses, information for various organizational positions can be placed within the same course and highlighted as such. However, ensure that all learners have access to all course information and avoid offering information using the “need to know basis,” thus having different versions for different positions. Equality in access to new company information provided through training programs or other communications allows for a more motivated learner and enlightened team.

2. Mastery

Allow for prior knowledge and ensure the eLearning is goal-oriented.

To use the work by Wiggins and McTighe in Understanding by Design (2005, ASCD),another book I’ve recommended, ask: “What do learners need to know and be able to do at the end of this course?”

Ensure that course objectives are specific, relevant and measurable. Stimulate recall of prior knowledge by allowing learners to select how they move through a course. Let learners jump to information that they need to acquire and allow them to decide what they already know. A good design and well-constructed content that speaks to your learner at their level will grab their attention enough for them to want to review all the content provided. The ultimate goal of mastery is long-term (Pink, pg. 56) and eLearning can be designed to build upon existing knowledge and transfer knowledge forward.

Some effective tools to include in eLearning to help build mastery consist of: extra resources and readings, self-assessments, simulations, job aids and instant feedback mechanisms. For blended programs add complementary tools such as ask-an-expert, mentoring or peer mentoring, presentations, recognition/internal awards of excellence or research projects.

3. Purpose

Provide relevance to your learner on how the content of the course affects how they currently perform their role and how new knowledge will assist them within the organization and their personal lives.

Pink states: “Autonomous people working toward mastery perform at very high levels. But those who do so in the service of some greater objective can achieve even more. The most deeply motivated people – not to mention those who are most productive and satisfied – hitch their desires to a cause larger than themselves” (Pink, pg. 131).

Although Pink is referring to more altruistic endeavors here, in training, we can also make learning more purposeful. Offering examples of practical applications of the new knowledge can help identify how the learner can adapt and incorporate the new knowledge. Whether or not your course objectives are to change behaviour or stimulate problem solving abilities, your goal in motivation is to create an environment for a higher level of thinking. Providing a complete picture for why a task is necessary puts the learning into perspective and allows for a richer level of engagement.

Some effective tools in eLearning that can be used to pursue purpose are: case studies, reflection exercises and examples of customer feedback. For a blended program consider adding coaching, mentoring, networking events, cooperative and team projects, internal knowledge fairs and community involvement.

People want to know that they are making a difference in their work and in their lives. Ultimately, this is what motivates us all.

Friday, July 22, 2011

by Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc.

The more passionate and knowledgeable we are about our content area or area of inquiry, the more likely we are to believe that we do not require an extensive repertoire of skills and techniques to transfer our expertise. We also believe that we do not require a deeper understanding of how our audience receives and learns from our sharing of expertise. Because we are all knowledgeable in our fields, it is common for us to also perceive ourselves as excellent knowledge providers. Yet not all of us are. Many professionals in every discipline may suffer from the same condition: the expert blind spot.

What Is the Expert Blind Spot?

Identified and studied at length in the field of education, the expert blind spot refers to the gaps of what subject matter experts know and what they assume their audience knows and more importantly, what their audience understands. From a book I recommend to instructional designers and anyone working in learning and training – Understanding by Design, Expanded 2nd Edition by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe (ASCD, 2005) – we learn how good design of courses, materials and presentations can make a difference in your audience’s understanding of what you present to them.

The authors tell us that what is obvious to experts is not obvious to a novice. When we present information to others, we need to ensure that key learnings are understood and not just transmitted as facts. And in fact, that key learnings are clearly identified before we create our materials.

In the professional world, we can apply this concept to our own skills in transferring knowledge. When we make formal presentations in the role of ‘expert’, we fail to see our own shortcomings in presentation skills such as preparing PowerPoint slides, facilitating meetings and engaging our audience.

3 Shortcomings Experts Make in Formal Presentations

Experts fail to understand how our audience learns.

Experts fail to learn how to design effective presentations and materials.

You may be thinking that this is just too basic. You may be saying, “I’m an expert. I’m a professional and called upon for my opinions. People value what I say. I know how to do this.” Don’t you want to ensure that your audience understands what you are saying?

Where each of us falls short is in knowing that the information we provided was actually understood by our audiences. By audience, I‘m referring to attendees in a professional development seminar or industry event, continuing in-house education, online learning or facilitated training, group meetings, and when directing junior associates or collaborating with our work colleagues. Authors, Wiggins & McTighe, provide the following example to illustrate my point:

“From the perspective of the experts, jargon and shorthand phrases permit easy and efficient communications; to the novice they are often off-putting barriers to understanding. The challenge in teaching for understanding is to introduce vocabulary when it will most help clarify experience and ideas that arise as a result of the teacher’s design” (pg. 139).

I am pleased to announce a new project for The Knowledge Transfer Company with the Ontario Bar Association. “Addressing Our Expert Blind Spots” is a series of e-learning modules designed to assist lawyers in ensuring they present their best knowledgeable self whether they are speaking in public, chairing a meeting or teaching to a virtual audience. The series will use social media sites to elicit anecdotal feedback to support development and inform OBA’s membership to the immediate value in confronting their own expert blind spots.

4 Ways to Address Your Expert Blind Spot

How we address our own expert blind spots can occur in many ways and relates back to my other blog entries on The 5 Segments of Knowledge Transfer as well as the tips and techniques talked about in Understanding by Design and in the new e-learning series for the OBA. But for those of you wanting to start right now, here are a few things to get you started when you are preparing presentations and facilitations, designing new courseware or outreach projects:

Know your audience

Use the backward design method to create courseware, presentations and support materials (start with the end in mind – what do I want my audience to know and be able to do at the end of my presentation/course/meeting?)

Tuesday, July 05, 2011

Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc., follows up recommendation of "The Checklist Manifesto" with an article from the New York Times: "The Paperless Cockpit" (Kate Murphy, July 4, 2011). In an industry that uses checklists everyday and as one of the key industries featured in Gawande's book, The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Rightby Atul Gawande (Picador, 2010), the iPad makes it on board with both commercial and private airlines to house the vast collection of checklists. Interesting article.

Some things are simple yet we do them wrong; some things are not so simple or are new and we need guidance. Creating and using a checklist can make a huge difference in performance and promoting change in the workplace. They have also been proven to save lives.

The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc. regularly incorporates the use of checklists in the elearning programs it designs as one of the final outcomes that becomes part of a daily workflow and we’ve also created observational checklists as summative evaluation tools in customer service courses.

When should checklists be used?

In his book, Gawande talks about how the use of checklists has been proven to reduce the risk of error or infection in surgery. Gawande also states that using a checklist can empower all job task members thus giving them a louder voice to express concerns and risks to superiors. Another positive outcome of using checklists results from having to run down a checklist with one or more people. The process of completing the checklist opens the door for more communication similar to group introductions at the beginning of a workshop; it allows the group to share something with each other and creates a more inviting atmosphere to talk during a procedure. Therefore, a checklist can help level the playing field in a group situation and help to create a more team-orientated environment. The outcomes are all positive.

What format should an effective checklist take?

“They are not comprehensive how-to guides, whether for building a skyscraper or getting a plane out of trouble. They are quick and simple tools aimed to buttress the skills of expert professionals” (Gawande, p. 128).

Here’s a checklist for an effective checklist:

Does the checklist fit on 1 page?

Does it include only the essential steps?

Are the number of steps between 6 and 12?

Are the key steps in sequential order (if required to be)?

Is the language easy to understand by all?

Does the checklist require a written or verbal response and is that record of the checklist being performed logged?

Was the checklist tested (more than once) before it was distributed or posted?

For elearning, is the checklist built directly into the course and easily accessible?

What are the benefits of a checklist?

Checklists can perfect various procedures and job-related tasks. They can help enable change within an organization, and increase productivity and quality. Here are some benefits of using a checklist:

Clarify new procedures

Provide and enforce standards

Prioritize tasks in specific situations

Improve teamwork and increase communications between team members

Reduce, even eliminate, reoccurring errors in a process

Improve efficiency

Build and transfer knowledge

Find out how to capture your firm’s unique and valuable information and use it as a competitive advantage to keep and attract the best talent. Call us to book our half-day strategic session on the 5 Segments of Knowledge Transfer and visit our website for an overview of our “Video Production Basics for In-House Technicians” full-day workshop.

Sunday, May 30, 2010

by Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc.

At The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc., we recognize the benefits of transferring knowledge to both the organization and an individual and can assist organizations in realizing these benefits listed below.

Knowledge transfer can help reduce the associated organizational and personal costs of:

• damaged morale

• hiring & training expenses

• loss of productivity

• health issues relating to stress

Resulting from:

• attrition through employees retiring and organizations downsizing

• retention through employees changing careers or leaving for the competition

Saturday, May 08, 2010

by Kelly Juhasz, President, The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc.

At The Knowledge Transfer Company (TKTC) Inc., we define knowledge transfer in a two-part definition that includes:

A. Identifying both specialized (tacit) and procedural (explicit) knowledge being created by members of your organization; followed by

B. Creating unique and creative tools and programs to capture, share and store knowledge within the organization making it available for those who need it when they need it.

Another way to say this is when an organization transfers knowledge it is involved in a process that is building and sharing tacit knowledge, justifying and prototyping explicit knowledge, and linking and exploiting external knowledge (1).

Tacit knowledge is undocumented know-how that is created through experience. This knowledge is usually found in the person or persons that everyone goes to in order to get help to solve problems that are not documented in the organization’s processes and procedures.

Explicit knowledge is created by the organization and formally documented inside of manuals and plans, databases and books. It is assembled to provide standard operational procedures and processes throughout an organization and is to be uniformly carried out the same way by each member of an organization.